Oklahoma – Oklahoma Attorney General Gentner Drummond is demanding answers about the ownership and financial interests behind a controversial aluminum smelter project, raising questions about whether President Donald Trump’s son-in-law Jared Kushner or members of public officials’ families could benefit from the foreign investment backing the development. “I’m asking the questions few others are willing to about the proposed aluminum smelter in Inola,” Drummond wrote in a November 10 post on X. “The good people of Oklahoma deserve leaders who will put communities’ interests above all, and that’s what I’ve committed to do with this project. We will find out exactly who is behind the smelter.” The attorney general’s comments came after he asked a Rogers County judge to require the two companies behind the proposed industrial complex to disclose additional information about their ownership, financial arrangements and possible connections to Kushner and his investment firm.
In a November 9 filing, Drummond requested that the companies identify communications and agreements involving Kushner, disclose whether he or any affiliated entity holds an interest in or stands to benefit from the project or its Emirati owners, and identify the source of the money behind the foreign investment. The request also expands the state’s questions to cover financial interests held by public officials’ in-laws, in addition to other family members. Drummond argued that any financial relationship involving a public official or their relatives would be relevant to the state’s ongoing lawsuit against the project. “If any public official or member of a public official’s family holds an interest in, or stands to benefit from, the Emirati investment behind the Inola smelter, that fact bears squarely on issues that are a part of this case,” he said in the filing.
The attorney general specifically pointed to allegations published October 22 by Vanity Fair in an excerpt from journalist Matthew Cole’s forthcoming book. The report described approximately $2 billion in payments allegedly placed into accounts connected to Kushner by the rulers of Abu Dhabi and Saudi Arabia beginning in 2017.
According to the allegations, the payments were connected to Kushner advancing the United Arab Emirates’ interests while serving as a senior adviser in the Trump administration.
Drummond emphasized that the allegations have not been established as facts.
“These are allegations, not findings, and the State treats them as such,” he said. “But they are serious allegations about the government that owns sixty percent of this project, and the State is entitled to find out whether they reach (the project).”
The two companies involved are Emirates Global Aluminium, a state-owned enterprise of the United Arab Emirates, which holds a 60% controlling interest, and Chicago-based Century Aluminum, which owns the remaining 40%.
The proposed facility, known as Oklahoma Primary Aluminum, is planned for approximately 633 acres along the Verdigris River near Inola. If completed, it would become the largest primary aluminum production facility ever constructed in the United States, with an expected annual production capacity exceeding 750,000 metric tons.
The project has also drawn attention because of the amount of public money involved. According to Drummond’s office, it includes a federal award of up to $500 million and approximately $255 million in state performance-based rebates.
Drummond has argued that the financial arrangements and environmental consequences deserve greater scrutiny before construction moves forward. His lawsuit, originally filed in June, seeks to stop the development over concerns about potential harm to residents, livestock, water resources and surrounding agricultural operations.
The attorney general has particularly warned about fluoride emissions from aluminum production, arguing that pollutants could settle on hay and threaten cattle operations in an area known for its agricultural production.
The companies, however, have pushed back against the state’s efforts to block the project and have disputed Drummond’s assertions.
In a statement to KTUL, Oklahoma Primary Aluminum said it disagrees with the attorney general’s claims and intends to address them through the appropriate legal process. The company also emphasized that the facility would be built in Oklahoma, operated by American workers and subject to federal and state laws.
The controversy has also attracted opposition from tribal governments and local residents, adding another layer to the growing dispute over the proposed development.
On November 10, the Cherokee Nation Tribal Council unanimously approved a resolution opposing the smelter and calling for meaningful consultation with affected tribal nations. The 17-member council backed the Muscogee Nation’s opposition, raising concerns that pollution from the facility could extend beyond reservation boundaries.
Cherokee Nation Council Speaker Johnny Jack Kidwell said the resolution recognizes the Muscogee Nation’s sovereignty and calls on state and federal regulatory agencies to consult with affected tribes.
The Muscogee Nation had already formally opposed the project in July, while Cherokee Nation Principal Chief Chuck Hoskin Jr. previously expressed concerns about its potential environmental impact.
Inola residents have also organized against the development, collecting signatures for an initiative petition seeking to put the project before voters next spring. The petition is being challenged by the City of Tulsa-Rogers County Port Authority, which manages the Tulsa Port of Inola.
The dispute has also become a political issue in Oklahoma, with President Trump, Gov. Kevin Stitt and incoming Gov. Mike Mazzei supporting the project, while Drummond has continued his legal effort to prevent its construction.
According to reporting by KOCO, Kushner has denied the allegations involving the alleged payments described in the Vanity Fair report. Drummond has likewise stressed that the allegations are unproven and that his latest court filing is intended to establish whether any connections exist between the foreign investment and people who could benefit financially from the project. The latest filing does not establish that Kushner owns any part of the smelter or has a financial interest in its development. Instead, Drummond is asking the companies to provide information that could clarify whether such connections exist. The attorney general has made clear that he intends to continue pressing for answers, arguing that Oklahomans deserve transparency about a project involving hundreds of millions of dollars in public incentives and a foreign government holding the controlling ownership stake.
Oklahoma AG Drummond takes aim at President Trump's son-in-law's potential ties to controversial smelter, says 'he's asking the questions few others are willing to'
